MAYOR VILLARAIGOSA ANNOUNCES 2015 SPECIAL OLYMPICS WORLD SUMMER GAMES WILL BRING $415 MILLION TO THE LOCAL ECONOMY

MAYOR VILLARAIGOSA ANNOUNCES 2015 SPECIAL OLYMPICS WORLD SUMMER GAMES WILL BRING $415 MILLION TO THE LOCAL ECONOMY

February 14, 2013 - LOS ANGELES – Surrounded by Special Olympics athletes and officials gathered for the LAUSD/Special Olympics Unified Basketball Finals, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa today announced a projected $415 million boon to the local economy when Los Angeles hosts the Special Olympics World Summer Games in 2015.

An economic impact report released today by Micronomics, a national economic research and consulting firm, projects that the games will bring more than 500,000 spectators and media representatives, 7,000 athletes and 3,000 coaches representing 170 countries, to the area for the games occurring July 24 to August 2, 2015.

Benefits to the Los Angeles economy will include approximately $130 million in expenditures by out-of-town visitors, an additional $25 million in spending by athlete and delegate accommodations, $60 million for production staff and associated production costs, and more than $200 million in related expenditures, including $27.5 million in state and local tax revenue. If local hotels reach 100 percent occupancy as expected, economic benefits are projected to spill over into surrounding communities in Ventura, Orange and Riverside Counties.

“I am excited that this unique event celebrating the achievements and spirit of people with intellectual disabilities will be a major contributor to our city's economy, generating more than $400 million in economic impact,” Mayor Villaraigosa said. “Not only will the Special Olympics boost our local economy in 2015, but it will also continue its tremendous work improving the quality of life, as well as respect and dignity, for those with disabilities.”

Special Olympics officials also took the opportunity to unveil their LA2015 logo.

"As we count down with less than 900 days until we welcome 7,000 athletes from 170 countries to Los Angeles for the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, we thank Mayor Villaraigosa for his support and enthusiasm, and are proud to unveil an exciting new logo -- created by our ad agency Davis Elen -- that will soon be displayed prominently throughout the Los Angeles area,” Patrick McClenahan, president and chief executive officer of LA2015, the Organizing Committee for the 2015 Games, said. "The celebratory figure represents the courage, determination and joy of our athletes, inside the circle represents acceptance and inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities, and the multiple colors, comprised of colors of flags around the world, represents diversity and the beautiful mosaic of our World Games athletes."

The 2015 Games will be the largest single event to be staged in the City since the 1984 Olympic Games and are projected be the largest sports and humanitarian event held anywhere in the world in 2015, featuring 26 Olympic-style events at venues throughout Los Angeles County, including USC, UCLA, the Los Angeles Convention Center and Griffith Park, as well as locations in Long Beach, Los Alamitos and the San Fernando Valley.

“They say Los Angeles is a place where dreams come true,” Special Olympics athlete, Global Messenger and member of the LA2015 Board of Directors Dustin Plunkett said. “At the last World Summer Games in Greece, I said that I hoped one day these Games and my fellow athletes would come to Los Angeles; that dream came true!"

The Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board commissioned Micronomics to undertake the economic impact study. The full report, “Economic Impact of the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games on Los Angeles County,” is available at http://www.micronomics.com/publications.